Each year approximately 20,000 individuals, mainly elders, die of complications brought on by influenza. In the 1970s a unique program that involved training and supervising medical students to give flu shots to Boston elders in community settings was started to address this problem, and to provide a community health experience for medical and public health students.
This presentation describes the origins of this program at Boston University's Department of Community Medicine, and its recent expansion to Harvard and Tufts Schools of Medicine, Boston University's School of Public Health, University of Massachusetts, Regis, and Simmons Colleges' Schools of Nursing. The presentation describes: goals of the program, process of identifying and training the students, organization of clinics, expansion of the program under the Boston Coalition for Adult Immunizations, and costs of operating the program.
Inclusion of all seven schools has resulted in a remarkable expansion of this program, as can be seen below:
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| 1997 |
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| 1998 |
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| 1999 |
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Anecdotal data will be presented on the impact the program has had on students' views of this program, how they work together and can gain understanding of community health issues and programs.
Conclusions are: that students can be recruited as enthusiastic participantsin community health programs, access to flu and pneumococcal shots for elders can be increased, and clinics can thereby be operated in an expanding number of settings.
Learning Objectives: Athe the conclusion of the session, the participant will be abe to: 1. Articulate the need to immunize elders in community settings 2. Describe how to integrate students into community-based immunization programs
Keywords: Immunizations, Students
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.